I found some older tools today at a price I might can afford. One was a Craftsman bench top wood cutting band saw. It was labeled 10", but had no blade dimensions or HP rating obvious. The other was a bit older Craftsman 16" scroll saw. It appeared to be single speed, 1/5 HP, but it came with a stand. For knife making applications, which would be the most useful?
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band saw vs. scroll saw
- Thread starter Jason Fry
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I've never had a need for a scroll saw. If I had one or had access to one maybe I'd use it, but I think the bandsaw will get more use.
on_the_edge
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I don't know about knife making applications specifically, but in general, a band saw is good for more generalized cutting where fine detail is not necessarily required. A scroll saw is much better at the very fine detail type of work.
That said, a scroll saw is an investment that requires a fair amount of $$$. If you buy something cheap, that cheapness will probably be obvious in whatever you are making. It's not like a drill press where you can probably get by with something for $100-200. IMO, no scroll saw is better that a cheap piece of garbage.
That said, a scroll saw is an investment that requires a fair amount of $$$. If you buy something cheap, that cheapness will probably be obvious in whatever you are making. It's not like a drill press where you can probably get by with something for $100-200. IMO, no scroll saw is better that a cheap piece of garbage.
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I bought myself one of the Craftsman scroll saws and tried it out for about 5 minutes before deciding to return it the same day. It didn't seem to want to cut even 1/4" hardwood. I thought about getting a small bandsaw and trying that, but most I don't think have enough power to cut through thick resinous hardwoods. I set up a Sawzall under my table with the blade protruding up through a slot in it. It has a whole heck of a lot of power and I can cut through 2" thick cocobolo if I wanted too. Doesn't take up space in my shop either. It's a bit crude, I know, but it works!
I could be wrong about the small bandsaw though, it might be just fine.
I could be wrong about the small bandsaw though, it might be just fine.
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A scroll saw (very good quality like a Hegner or RBI) will take forever to cut a steel blade profile. A cheap one (like less than $1,000.00) will be terrible. A steel cutting (80 FPM) will work great. Scroll saws are great for inlay, fretwork, fine fine detail pierce work. Great for woodworking as an example.
Good luck,
Balin
Good luck,
Balin
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- Apr 13, 2005
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I would suggest a portaband, stick it in a vise make a larger table for one it comes with and wala....you have a verticle metal and wood bandsaw. btw, depress the trigger then drill a small hole to put a pin in it so when it is plugged up later the pin keeps it on and you have two hands on the material.
I use corian for the table. hope that helps,,,,,,and you can get bye with a harbor freight one.
I use corian for the table. hope that helps,,,,,,and you can get bye with a harbor freight one.